Going Back
by TTOH
Summary: It's Spring again, and Pony's back in school. But when a twister roars through the town, how will they pick up the pieces again?
1. Chapter 1

**Alright guys... here we go. And I just wanted to say that if you don't like it...**

**TOO BAD! *cackles madly* Have fun reading!**

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The light streamed from the windows into my eyes. And I knew what was coming next.

"Ponyboy! You're gonna be late for school! If you don't hurry up, I'll come in there and beat you with a pillow!" Darry sounded awfully in a rush, like always. I groaned and sat up, then Soda came in.

"Have you seen my work pants?" I rubbed my eyes and shook my head.

"And if you'd ever cleaned your half of the room I bet you'd find them, Mr. I-Know-Where-Everything-Is." But I was smiling, and so was he.

"Glory Pone, I thought that's what you were for. Man. That's a real bummer-" He was cut off as another voice came in loudly.

"Good morning, Curtis brothers!" Two-Bit was shouting from the living room, and I could practically hear Steve sulking in behind him. Me and Soda grinned at each other before Two-Bit came in and tackled me on the bed. He started tickling me, and I couldn't stop laughing. I had tears welling up in my eyes before he stopped. At some point in all of this, Soda had found his pants. I grumbled and stood up, getting my clothes and heading to the bathroom, both of the other guys tailing me.

"Aw kid, I was just messin'. Don't be mad at ol' Two-Bit." I smiled into my fist, but he didn't see. I stayed silent and I heard him shuffle past me. I shut the door and hopped into the shower. I had to hurry though, because I would be late. I got out and towel-dried my hair, reaching for the hair grease. I opened the container of it, and there was none in there! Soda must have used it all! I looked around for another canister, but there wasn't any. I sighed. Then I reached to get my shirt, but it was all wet. I sighed again. The clothes I brought with me were all wet, because I stepped on them when I got out.

I wrapped a towel around my waist like Soda always does and I walked out to the dryer. Unfortunately, the dryer was past the living room.

"Whoo-wee! Look at this kid! He ain't nothin' but skin and bones!" I blushed and hurried past their stares. Darry was in the washroom and he scrutinized me.

"Hmm..." he put a thoughtful finger to his chin. "Pone, you do kinda look skinny... Tonight you're going to eat. And you're going to eat everything on your plate."

"But Darry-!" Darry cut me off.

"Kiddo, don't argue with me. It's not healthy to be like that," he motioned to my jutting hipbones, which I hadn't noticed before. I sighed and threw my clothes into the dryer. I went and sat down in the kitchen, kinda sulky.

"Kid, I didn't mean-"

"Can it, Two-Bit." I snapped, eating some cake that was on the table. The dryer buzzed and I hurried to get dressed. I stepped out with my bag, and hopped in Steve's car.

"Bye, Pone!" Soda waved as we went our separate ways. I waved back half-heartedly, smiling weakly. I sit back, waiting for Two-Bit to hop in as Steve revved the engine.

"Two-Bit, hurry your ass up!" Steve yelled, honking the horn.

"Stevie, your patience really is astounding." Two-Bit said as he got in. He shot me an apologizing look, but I looked out the window. Today was not his day. I wasn't mine, either.

"Hey, kid. Pony. Ponyboy!" I then realized that Steve had been saying my name. I turned my head towards him.

"Sorry." I say, getting out.

"Shit, kid. Ain't nothing wrong. Don't go apologizing." Steve said, getting out also. Two-Bit was beside me, his hand on my shoulder. I jerk from his grasp, and he gave me a hard look.

"Look, Two-Bit, stop being so serious. Ain't nothin' happening. I ain't some little kid who can't defend himself." He absent-mindedly fingered his sideburns.

"I didn't know you were so tiny. You're nothin' but bones." I sighed and walked inside. I really didn't want to talk about this right now. Why did he have to bring it up? I went to my locker and grabbed my English II book. I hurried to class, so I could sit in back, along with the other greasers who took the class. I sighed. I really thought that maybe I wouldn't be left alone about all this. But, this is not a main concern at the moment.

"Ponyboy?" my teacher called me up after class.

"Yes, Ms. Roenne?" She smiled and I wondered what could possibly be happening.

"Your grades are very good, Ponyboy." I thanked her, but haven't they always been good? She continued, "I think it would be in your best interest to take an Honours English class." I cocked my head.

"Aren't I already taking a higher course?" she smiled and shook her head.

"There are three classes. Reading skills, English II, and Honours English. I think you'd be great in that class." I thought for a second.

"Okay." I shrug, and she seems to like this answer.

"Great. You'll start it next quarter." I nodded and thought about that. Darry'll think that's amazing. But... I'll get more homework. More homework equals more nagging, and more nagging equals a very unhappy Ponyboy. I laughed inwardly, then accidentally bumped into somebody.

"Hey, greaser watch where you're- Hey wait a minute... you're that kid! The one who killed Bob!" He took me by my shirt collar.

"I-I didn't k-kill anybody!" I stammer out, and he just ignores me.

"You're going to wish that it was you who died when we're done! Ricky! Hold him against the lockers." I wondered foolishly how no teacher has seen this going on yet. Ricky pins me against the lockers and I thrash, trying to get free. He just hold me tighter, then the other Soc smashes my nose with his fist. I feel I dripping from my nose instantly and I turn my face so he'll his my cheek. He's a coward, though, and goes for my stomach. All the air is knocked from me and I slump forwards, trying to curl in on myself. I need to breathe but the air just wouldn't come.

"HEY! What're you doing?!" I hear a familiar voice, but I can't process anything. Ricky-or whoever-drops me, and I fall to my hands and knees, sucking in a shaky breath after another. I feel rough hands puling me up, but I'm still bent forwards.

"Kid, kid. Look at me. Don't lean that way. Kid! Dammit, kid." Steve is there, hauling my ass so I'm standing straight up. I feel so much better when he does that. I can breathe easier. I look at him, and he's still muttering curses. He wipes at my nose and Two-Bit comes running down the hallway.

"Hey, Pony, what happened?" I don't really want to say right now, so I just hold my nose and keep my trap shut. Steve speaks up.

"He was getting beat by a couple'a Soc's that's what, Two-Shit." Two-Bit looks lost for words and I somehow find the strength to smirk. Steve looks at me.

"Kid this ain't funny. Darry's gonna blow the roof. Soda ain't gonna be happy either." I snap back.

"Well maybe if he wasn't a dropout, he would'a been there to help." I yank my arm from his grasp, and he looks like a fish out of water for a second. Two-Bit's eyes look stormy.

"You know why-" He starts, but I cut him off.

"Yeah, I know why. But look at me," I motion to my thin frame. "I ain't looking so hot. Darry's tired that I'm the only one going to school. He wants all of us to at least get our Diploma." I back away a few steps. "I'll see you around." Then I walked to the last class of the day. Chemistry.


	2. Chapter 2

**Alrighty, Next Chapter.**

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Chemistry is hard. No joke. There's formulas and equations, and how I ended up in this upperclassmans's class, I'll never know. This is tough, not to be confused with tuff. And chemistry is not _tuff. _When the bell rang, I hightailed it outta there. I wasn't looking to stick around, with my face being bruised. But, maybe it wasn't that bad, because my teacher hadn't stopped the lecture to look at me. Maybe my nose wasn't that bad.

"Ponyboy! Over here." I heard Two-Bit call to me and we walked back to Steve's car together. The spring air felt nice, and it was a sunny day. I looked around. Everything on the school ground was nice and green; but at home, the grass is a mile high and dead. It needed to be cut so it could grow again. I sat in the backseat, Two-Bit and Steve in front.

"So what's your teacher say about your face?" Two-Bit asked, trying to make conversation.

"Nothing. He didn't even look at me." But that partly may be because I'm a Greaser. But that teacher was fair. He didn't care about the social class you came from. So I doubt that it was that I'm a Greaser. I leaned forwards, between the two seats, getting ready to talk to the guys up front when Steve slammed on his brkes.

"Asshole," he muttered under his breath, honking the horn. I kinda laughed at that, and so did Two-Bit did too. Steve wasn't really in the mood.

"Kid, shut your trap. Two-Bit, you too." I just bit my cheek and kept smiling.

"Hey, Two-Bit," I drawled, anything I had against him gone, "How does my nose look, anyways?" He took a good long look at it.

"It doesn't look as bad as it did earlier when I saw it. Just a little yellowish. Darry might not even notice. Shoot, kid, I'd say you were in the clear." I smiled, but then realization dawned on me; Darry would notice. He can't miss something like this. I sighed. Oh well, I guess he'll find out on his own, cuz I ain't tellin' him.

We pulled up at my house, and Two-Bit and I hopped out. Steve had to work, Soda was already workin', and Darry wouldn't be here till later because he was working so late. He's working the warehouse tonight. I got the hamburger out to thaw because it was my night to cook. If I had forgotten like last time, when Darry came home from the warehouse, he lost it. He's too stressed out with both these jobs.

As I thought, I realized that he was still my brother, not my dad. He hasn't acted likey brother since mom and dad's accident. Two-Bit was on the couch watching God-knows-what, and I sat beside him.

"Kid, do you appreciate Mickey? He is a legend, you know." I knew that he had been drinking, but damn, I didn't think it was that much. We just got home, for Pete's sake. This shouldn't be allowed.

"Two-Bit, Mickey will only be a legend when Hell freezes over, and that's the only thing people will watch." He smacked me lightly on the back of my head and grinned. If grinned back, then looked out the livingroom window. The sun that had been there was gone. It was almost pitch black out, but it was only five; something was wrong. I stood up, Two-Bit's grey dancing eyes watching me curiously. I walked onto the porch, and immediately I felt the air. It was at a stand-still, and everything was silent. No birds were chirping, no crickets singing. It was all wrong.

"Two-Bit..." I said loudly, coming inside. He looked at me, and I guess my look told him everything.

"Ponyboy don't go outside, and whatever you do-" he was cut off by the sound of sirens. I froze up. I had never heard those sirens before. They were different than police cars, different than firetrucks.

"Glory Pone, it's a twister!" Time stood still for me, but Two-Bit was up. He grabbed my arm and hauled me to the hallway. We didn't have a basement. "Stay here!" He said, running to the couch and getting the cushions. He put one in my lap, and showed me what to do. I held onto the cushion for dear life, as if it could help and stop this nightmare.

Glass shattered everywhere, and I grit my teeth as my ears popped painfully. I could see the kitchen perfectly from here, the back door was caved in as terse from the backyard smashed through it. I heard a creaking noise, and I looked up. The ceiling's plaster was falling down in clumps, and I looked at Two-Bit, his eyes now sober. He had a cut down his face from flying glass, and I wondered how I looked.

"Two-Bit, are you okay?" I had to yell it over the roar of the wind. He looks as though he didn't hear me. Then I heard a huge snap, and Two-Bit was trying to stand up.

"PONY!" He screamed, then the roof caved in. Two-Bit fell with a cry, and I was trapped where I was. I struggled, but then I felt a stinging sensation in my hand and leg, and I stopped moving. I thought one last foolish thing.

_Lights out._

_[Soda's POV]_

I had been out helping a customer when I heard the sirens. They wailed throughout the city and I ushered the customers inside and went down to the basement. Those were the longest ten minutes of my life. The lights went out, and the customers screamed.

Steve was beside me, cursing a storm and with a pang I remembered Ponyboy and Darry. I hoped they were okay. When we got the all-clear over the battery radio, I rushed to the top. The door was slightly blocked so I had to shove my weight against it to get it open. The store was gone. The walls were out somewhere I didn't know, and didn't care to know.

The cash register was still in tact, but I didn't care for it. I ran. The cars were totally demolished, and we were soon to have a job after this. I ran home, Steve on my tail as we hauled ass home. I stopped for a second, getting around the police officers, and I felt my stomach drop.

_Where is our house? _I thought. And then I seen the familiar gate, and then I almost vomited. Our house had collapsed. I jumped over the rubble and dug down. I came across a shoe, but it was in an odd position for it not to be attached to someone. I dug up more, Steve helping me. I finally found the owner of the shoe: Two-Bit. I gasped when I seen his arm. There was a rusty nail in it. I shuttered and slapped his face.

"Two-Bit, wake up!" I screamed, "TWO-BIT!" His eyes moved under his lids and he let out a breath.

"No, Ma, don't. It hurts." He said, his eyes still shut, and I thanked The Lord he was still alive. I patted his face till he opened his eyes, groaning.

"Are you okay, buddy?" Steve asked, and then Two-Bit's eyes went wide. He didn't move, his eyes going glassy. I waved a hand in front of his face, then cursed when he didn't respond, except with a "Pony's still buried..." He whispered that.

"Steve take care of Two-Bit. I'm pretty sure he's in shock." I said, digging in various other places. Finally I found him. He looked terrible, his fingernails dirty, his leg looked like it was bent in a way it wasn't supposed to and his hand had a bone sticking out. I swallowed thickly, trying to keep calm.

I pulled him from the remains of the house. Steve had already drug Two-Bit onto the side walk. A man came driving by and asked if we needed help.

"Has the hospital been hit?" I asked.

"No, son. Do you need a ride there?" I nodded.

"They're really hurt! We need to hurry." I said. And he got out of his truck and loaded us in the bed of his truck. I held onto Pony so be wouldn't move too much, and I took a good look at Two-Bit. Steve had taken the nail from his arm, and it was bleeding freely. His face was scrunched up in obvious pain, but his eyes were still glassy.

Pony looked terrible, too. His hand and leg were definitely broken. I didn't think anything else was broken or hurt, but I couldn't be sure. I had one other thought in mind:_ Darry._


	3. Chapter 3

**Next Chapter! Hope you guys that wanted this like it!**

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_[Darry's POV]_

Working at the warehouse has it's perks over working on the roof that particular evening. As the store manager yelled "Hit the basements, Curtis!" I realized I was the only guy who hadn't heard the sirens crying throughout the warehouse. I booked it to the stairs, almost getting shoved head first down them, the wind roared through the shattered windows. I barely made it to the bottom when the door slammed shut, locking everybody down here.

Five minutes passed, and we were still stuck down here with no power.

Eight had passed, and part of the ceiling had caved through, effectively knocking things down here.

Nine minutes had passed, and I finally started thinking about Pony, Soda and the other two. Then a big piece of metal had fell from the hole and cut my arm.

Ten had passed, and it was finally over. I helped anybody who had gotten hurt, then went to see if my truck was still there. I saw that it it was surprisingly in one piece, and I hoped it started and nothing had effected the engine. Thankfully nothing had. I started speeding (carefully speeding, if that's possible), down the road, avoiding the fallen trees and power lines. I'm glad that our house wasn't that far away from the warehouse. I drove by too many collapsed houses, then coming to the end of the road. I realized with a pang that our house was destroyed also. '

I saw the gate (and how that was still there really baffled me), and my breath caught in my throat. I dug through the rubble and didn't find anything but a couple couch cushions where the hallway would be.

"Sir?" Someone called to me, and I wheeled around to him.

"Yes?" I had this feeling that he knew what was going on here.

"A couple of boys had been rescued from there already. I drove them to the hospital and came back to help. Do you know them?" I ran my hands through my hair.

"What did they boys look like?" He scrubbed at his chin in thought.

"Well, the boys that helped them out had DX shirts on. They looked okay. One of the boys that was buried in there had long rusty sideburns. The other one was kinda shortish. He was younger than the sideburned guy by a few years I'd say." I felt myself pale.

"Were they hurt?"

"Boy, sonny, you ask a bunch of questions. The sideburn guy-"

"Two-Bit. His name his Two-Bit." I said, rather harshly. He gave me a look but continued.

"Okay, _Two-Bit,_ then looked like he could'a had a concussion. Had a hole in his arm. The other young'n-" I interrupted him again.

"Ponyboy." He looked downright weirded out then.

"Yeah okay. Ponyboy had a few broken bones." I sighed and ran another hand through my hair, contemplating what to do next. I had to get to the hospital, but with no house, the State's not going to let both Pony or Soda stay with me. I have to figure this out. And I have to figure this out _fast. _I thanked the man then run to my truck, speeding once again to the hospital. I ran inside, a wild, untame feeling running though my stomach. A doctor came out, scanning the waiting room, his eyes resting on me.

"D'you need help?" He eyed my arm, the deep cut still oozing blood. I looked around the waiting room, looking at a kid who's arm looked broken.

"Help him first. Then come talk to me." He nodded, walking to the kid with his mom, or sister, or someone. He set the arm right then and there, yelling at a passing nurse to get him the tools he needed, the kid screaming.

I hunched in my seat, trying not to imagine images of Pony and Two-Bit. A nurse walked to me with thread and a needle in one hand, a sterile cloth in the other. She smiled at me, promising it wouldn't hurt. And it didn't really, after she cleaned and addressed it. I smiled a thanks at her before she walked away. I looked around again, sweeping across the room to try and find something familiar. I found a DX hat on the floor in front of two boys who looked oddly similar to some people I know. I stood up, reaching them in three strides.

"Soda? Steve?" They both looked up, but it was Soda who reacted first.

"DARRY!" He screamed, launching himself into my arms so forcefully I staggered just a bit. The people surrounding us kind of 'Awwed' and Steve smirked. I set him down and he sat, moving another chair beside him.

"Dar are you okay?" He eyed the stitches I just received.

"Yeah, little buddy, I'm okay. Are you?" He just sort of gave me a wane smile. I looked at Steve. "You?" He scoffed.

"Ain't nothing can hurt me, Darry." I just smirked.

"You just keep remembering that after a rumble, Randle." He laughed and so did Soda. Then the seriousness broke through and we were all silent.

"How are they?" I asked softly, looking at Steve full in the face, because Soda had dipped his head. Steve shook his head.

"They looked... I'm sorry, but they looked terrible. We're still waiting on the doctor to tell us anything." I nodded, sitting back. Soda's shoulders started quaking, and I was alarmed.

"Soda what's wrong?" He looked at me, his eyes teary and wet tracks down his face. He was never one to hide his feelings, just like Pony. His emotions were able to show through, even if they tried to keep their faces expressionless. I waited while he swallowed thickly over and over, calming his breathing.

"What if- What if they end up like Johnny?" Steve went rigid, and I felt the blood leave my face like earlier. I took his shoulders and shook him slightly.

"That is _not _going to happen, I promise you, Sodapop." He nodded, still sniffling. I sighed at his thought, but couldn't blame his reasoning. This hospital was not lucky. This is _the _hospital, the one where Pony was in after the rumble. The one where Dally ran out. The one where Johnny died. I pinched the bridge of my nose, blinking._  
_

"Mathews? Curtis?" I stood up, the chair falling behind.

"Yes?" We all said together. The doctor raised his eyebrow, but didn't saying anything.

"Okay, I need to make this quick because we are needed everywhere, so here's the skinny. Keith as suffered a concussion and required a tetanus shot. He's being treated for his shock, but we cannot allow him to sleep. Pony... Ponyboy?" He asked, then proceeded when we nodded, "He has a broken Tibia, which has been set, and his hand required minor surgery in his hand to replace the severely broken bone. He was brought in unconscious, and is still unconscious. Keith is still unresponsive, but maybe seeing familiar faces will help him. They're in the same room, 206. You may see them." For that doctor telling us he needed to hurry, that sure was a winded explanation. But I didn't really care, and I sped walked (ran, really), to their room.

I slowed when I came to their room, and I entered slowly, not sure what I'd see. Two-Bit was in the first bed, staring straight ahead at the wall, while Pony was in the second bed with his leg elevated in a cast, and his hand wrapped in gauze. I went over to him and stroked his hair, then moved over to Two-Bit, seeing how he was at the moment.

_[Steve's POV]_

I stood beside Two-Bit while Darry and Soda went to see the kid. I sat awkwardly beside Two-Bit, who hadn't blinked once since we've entered the room. I patted his arm.

"Buddy? You there?" I spoke softly, then Darry came and joined me beside him. Two-Bit took a shuttering breath then turned his head slowly to stare at me. Let my tell you something. That scared me fucking shitless. That had to be the most scariest things I've ever seen, and I've seen a whole bunch of scary shit.

"Pony... He.. I tried to save him... Darry I swear!" Two-Bit started shouting. "Darry, PLEASE!" Darry put his hands on his shoulders to keep him from thrashing around and hurting his head.

"Two-Bit, it's okay! I'm not mad at you! Pony's okay! He's right beside you!" Darry said to him. Two-Bit stopped moving.

"He-he's okay?" I wonder how long they've been in the same room together and he hadn't even noticed he was there. Two-Bit stared at me again, and I nodded at his question. Soda's eyes looked sad as he looked over at us from the kid's bed. I pointed over at his bed.

"B-but I saw him! I got hit but I seen him get buried!"

"Get a hold on yourself, Keith! Ponyboy is just fine!" I suddenly shouted out. He stopped, then blinked, his eyes not glassy anymore.

"Steve?" he said, putting a hand to his head.

"The one and only. Welcome back, buddy." He looked confused.

"Where did I go?" I chuckled, then shook my head. He yawned, his eyes drooping.

"Whoa! Stay awake there, man." I said, slapping his face slightly. He glared at me. I just shrugged. This is one of those moments ( Whoa, hey, Steve is actually thinking about something? ) where I would kill for some action. Something to keep my mind occupied, so that I wouldn't have to dwell on the current situation. I sighed and looked down at my hands.

"Hey," Two-Bit said softly, "How is he?"

"Do you remember anything from earlier? The truck ride? Any of that?" He shook his head.

"No... Well, I remember you guys finding me. It's all a blank from there."

"Oh. Darry?" I looked at him, so he could explain about the kid. Darry smiled sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"His hand and leg is broken. He's asleep right now."

"I ain't sleepin'." I looked over at Pony, his eyes wide open, full of pain. I stood up, going to get a nurse, who no doubt wanted to know Pony was awake and that Two-Bit was fine. I wandered the hallway, the place littered with people crying, people comforting other people, or people just plain sitting around. I kept walking, finally coming across a blonde nurse walking the halls.

"In room 206, Ponyboy is awake and Two-Bit isn't in shock anymore." I had no idea whether she knew who they were, but she apparently did, for she went to a medical cart and got a sedative or something. She followed me to their room, where there was a scene.

"DARRY DON'T LET HER TAKE ME!" Ponyboy was yelling, a lady who wasn't there before was standing with a grim expression on her face.

"Ponyboy... Shh..."

"SHE CAN'T TAKE US! I WANT TO STAY WITH DARRY! DON'T YOU, SODA?!" Pony was seriously losing it. This lady, who I recognized as Mrs. Lock, their social worker, was handing Darry a form, who crumpled it and threw it back at her. The nurse hurried forward.

"I will not have you messing with my patients. Shoo!" She still held the needle in one hand, which I think was the main reason the lady went willingly. Pony was breathing heavily, tears streaming down his face, holding his head with his good hand. I wondered if there was something else wrong with him that the doc failed to tell us. But then I remembered that the kid had a weird defense. Whenever he got upset like this, he tended to get a pounding in his head, and when asked 'on a one-to-ten scale, how bad?' he would always answer with a 'one-hundred!'.

The nurse injected the sedative into his IV bag, and his movements went jerky and sluggish, then his head lolled to the side, and he was asleep again. Two-Bit was sitting in a stony silence, and Darry was holding a sobbing Soda.

I didn't even have to ask them what happened to know what was going on.

The kid and Soda were getting taken away.


	4. Chapter 4

**Next Chapter.**

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_[Ponyboy's POV]_

It's like my eyelids were lead. You hear that phrase a lot, but you can't really understand it's meaning until you know the feeling. Well I was feeling it right now. I struggled to even move, let alone think about moving. And just like that, things came flooding back.

_"Hello, boys." Mrs. Lock knocked, then entered right as Steve left. I felt myself stiffen. "As you know, since you don't have a house at the moment-"_

_"You went by our _property?_" Darry was blazing with anger. I noticed how he didn't say 'house'. The woman looked taken aback. _

_"Well, yes, but it was necessary for us to take action over all kids with the state. Including you boys." She looked at me and Soda. Soda gripped my hand and said nothing. She continued. "Ponyboy, Sodapop, we need to be heading out." Darry looked outraged._

_"DARRY DON'T LET HER TAKE ME!" I suddenly screamed, unable to take it. Steve was standing in the door with a nurse, who had a needle. Soda tried to calm me._

_"Ponyboy... Shh..." I flailed about._

_"SHE CAN'T TAKE US! I WANT TO STAY WITH DARRY! DON'T YOU, SODA?!" I just couldn't keep myself from yelling, and Soda had to restrain me. _

_"Doesn't he need to be released before you can do that?" Darry said, stalling time. Mrs. Lock took out and showed Darry what was no doubt a release form. Darry crumpled it and threw it right back at her. That's when the nurse took charge, shooing Mrs. Lock out. My head pounded and I braced it in my good hand. Then she came over and injected that needle into my IV. _

_Everything from then on is a blank._

Oh no. No, no, no, NO! I groaned and wiped away tears that were threatening to fall. It was night, judging by the window, and everybody was asleep either in a cot, the floor, or in mine or Two-Bit's case, a bed.

I hadn't noticed Two-Bit was awake until I saw him staring his hand hands. I didn't think he knew I was looking at him, otherwise we'd be deep in a one-sided conversation right now. Two-Bit being the one side. He looked deep in thought, and it was a shame to pull him from it.

"Penny for your thoughts?" I said teasingly. I laughed as he jumped a mile.

"Glory, kid! You're awake!"

"Erm... Yeah?" He smiled wide and got up fast from his bed, grabbing me up in a huge bone-crushing (pun intended) hug. I patted his back awkwardly. When he stepped back and got back into his bed, I saw that his IV had come partly out of his hand. He just kept talking, though.

"Man, I thought that nurse gave you too much of that medicine..."

"Hey, Two-Bit?"

"...You were out for a few days..."

"Two. Bit."

"...I haven't seen you awake since you nearly had a panic attack the other day..."

"KEITH. ALAN. MATHEWS." I said, getting his attention. He looked at me.

"Ponyboy Michael. Do not tell me there is no reason to worry."

"Your IV is sticking clear out of your hand." He looked at it, then sheepishly grinned and shoved it back into his arm. I winced. I scratched at my hand, then realized that there was gauze wrapping around it. I tugged at it and saw seven stitches.

"Kid, I'd leave that wrapped up. Your hand's broken." Two-Bit brought me from my thoughts and I stared at him.

"My hand was _broken?"_ I said, sucking in a big breath.

"Correction. Is broken. Your leg too. Though, your hand was a lot worse." I just stared at him, joking around like that. But he was in a hospital bed too, so there had to be something wrong with him. So, to get the attention off of me, I asked the million-dollar question.

"What happened to you?"

"Now that," he said, pointing at me, "Is a good question."

"So? Are you gonna tell me?" He got this faraway look in his eye, like he was gonna tell me a story. I groaned inwardly. I asked him what happened, not every detail of the twister. I was there for it.

"Well, it started off when I was at my Ma's house. I walked into the house, see? That's when I heard this growling noise upstairs," he made the noise for effect, "So, being the tough guy that I am, I went up there to see what was happening. Little did 'ol Two-Bit know, there was a wild black bear up there. Man oh man, was I in for it. But I couldn't chicken out, my kid sister was watchin'. So I used my bare hands -see what I did there? _Bear _and _bare?- _right hooked em, but he clawed my arm, see?" He showed me the gauze on his arm. "And he slammed me against the wall, so I hit my head and got a concussion. But I whooped his bear ass." He giggled like a little school girl when there are cookies at lunch. I couldn't help but cackle along.

"Y-you know you can't r-right hook a bear, right?" I was still snorting with laughter while he grinned ear-to-ear. "I swear, man, you're gettin' crazier and crazier." He just laughed.

"But seriously. What happened?" I waited for him to sober up.

"Pony, I got smashed under the rubble same as you. I got a rusty nail to the arm, so I had to get tetanus shots. I was in shock. They would'a let me sleep if I didn't have a concussion."

"Shock? What for?" You wouldn't just go into shock for nothing.

"I guess my mind didn't like seeing you get crushed like that. It's all I could see for a long time, until Steve finally got me out of it." I cringed. That must've been a sight to see over and over. I bit my lip. What could I say?

"I'm sorry." He said suddenly. I whipped my head to face him.

"What for?" I was totally baffled. He couldn't possibly be sorry for anything.

"For not keeping this from happening. I tried to get up to cover you. But I-I just couldn't reach you." He sounded so sad, as if he was just about to cry. I reached out for him, but could barely just touch his shoulder.

"Two-Bit, you did save me. You gave me that couch cushion, and if you hadn't, we would've been a lot worse off. You went into the open to help you and I, and I probably wouldn't be able to say that now if you hadn't." He took a long, raspy breath and wiped his eyes.

"Thanks, Pone." I just nodded.

"It's good to hear you awake, little buddy." A new voice came through the open, and I whipped my head around to look a Darry, grinning on the ground. "Been asleep long enough?" I was confused.

"What?" He sat up off the cot.

"That nurse put enough medicine in that bag to keep an elephant down. You've been out for two days." I shuttered. This was like when Johnny and Dally died. When I was asleep for a long time. I wondered idly if it hurt to die. Maybe it didn't hurt Johnny. Maybe it hurt Dally, because of the bullets. I didn't know, and I didn't want to know.

"Huh- Wha?" Soda was up. "What time is it?" It never occurred to me to look at the time. Darry answered him instead.

"Seven in the mornin', Pepsi-Cola." I could practically hear Soda backpedal.

"We'll, in that case, I'm goin' back to sleep." I pouted.

"So you don't want to talk to little old Ponyboy?" I said with fake-hurt. He turned his head so quick, I almost heard it crack.

"PONY!" Then he got up from the floor, and gave me a hug.

"Kiddo, I'm glad you're up. It's been so lonely without you."

"And what am I, chopped liver?" Two-Bit scoffed. Soda cackled and leaned in towards me.

"He's just sore that he couldn't leave that bed until they're sure he doesn't have tetanus," he laughed again. "You should'a seen 'im yesterday. He was so bored he started telling about his theory on where the world came from." He wrinkled his nose, as if it had been a terrible experience.

"I can imagine."

"I'm up!" Steve yelled suddenly from the other side of Two-Bit's bed. He laid his eyes on me, and gave me a little smirk.

"You're up."

"No shit." I said, smirking back.

"Pony!" Darry and Soda said at the same time. Steve and Two-Bit went into a fit of hysterics. Soda joined in and soon Darry chuckled a bit.

"So I suppose this means you're feelin' better?" Darry said, ruffling my hair. I nodded, but then caught his expression.

"What's wrong, Darry?" I said. Everything went silent for a second. He sighed and rubbed his forehead, and I dreaded what he was going to say.

"The social worker," I grimaced, knowing where this was going, "Said that you had to go with her as soon as you woke up. You and Soda both." I went pale, and Soda gulped loudly. Two-Bit coughed behind me and Steve let out a breath.

"But Darry, are you sure-"

"Don't worry, kiddo. I'll see to it that I get you. Both of you. I-I know I can't do anything about her taking you, but I can get you back. I will you back. I promise." He gripped my good hand, and I sucked in one breath at a time. A knock issued from the door, and I bit my tongue. But it was just a nurse._  
_

"Oh, goodness, you're awake." She came over and checked everything; temperature, heartbeat, blood pressure, you name it. I looked over at a smirking Two-Bit, and I flipped him the bird when the nurse wasn't looking. Darry saw, though, and wasn't impressed. The other guys thought it was mighty hilarious. I mean, come on. I just want to lighten up the mood.

When the nurse was done, she went right over to Two-Bit. I laughed. He just flipped me the bird like I did to him.

The nurse saw that.

"Keith Mathews, I know your mama. I know that if she seen that, she's let me break that finger right off." I couldn't help but start laughing at his face. He looked so stricken, that he was frozen in place.

Once the nurse left, it was eight, and I felt dread creeping up. A short knock rang through once, then Mrs. Lock walked in.

"Ponyboy, good to see you awake. Soda, good to see you. Darrel, a pleasure." She walked stiffly like always. I tried to smile at her, I really did, but all I could give her was a grimace. Then I wondered how she knew I was awake. And as if she read my mind, she said,

"I've come to check in on you everyday since you've been asleep. Your brothers," she looked at them pointedly, "Wouldn't allow me more than fifteen minutes to view your condition." She said this as if it was the worst crime imaginable. "I'm sure you were informed of what I would be doing as of your wake?" She talked too formally for me. I didn't like it.

She spoke as if she were reading those words right off a page in an old English book, and I grit my teeth. I like books, so I won't ruin it for me by comparing her to them.

"Ponyboy? Did you hear me?" She snapped me out if my reverie, which was not a smart thing to do. I don't like when people pull me from my thoughts, and the gang knows it. Soda pulled in a breath, muttering "That was a bad move, lady."

I tightened my jaw then answered her stiffly.

"Yes, Mrs. Lock, I heard you loud and clear." She squinted at me.

"Then why didn't you answer me, then, hmm? I asked you a question, and you are obliged to answer as such." I gripped the bed sheets with my good hand.

"I ain't gotta do nothin', Mrs. Lock." She completely ignored the sentence, just to correct my wording.

"That's a double negative, my dear. 'Ain't' fell into a bucket of paint. You do not use words that don't exist, honey." I nearly lost it right there but Darry cut off my sharp retort.

"Can you please stop arguing with a kid, Mrs. Lock?" Her lips tightened into a hard white line, but she said nothing.

She pulled out a form, which was no doubt a release form, and thrust it into Darry's face. Darry took it and looked apologetically at me, then signed it. He sighed, his eyes looking shiny. I bit my lip, and a wheelchair was brought into the room. Soda helped me out of bed, and put me in the wheelchair. Darry hugged me tightly, whispering comforting things in my ear. Two-Bit even came out of bed to hug me. Steve shook my hand. That bastard.

"Ten days, Darrel. You have ten days to find a house and stable living conditions, otherwise these two are wardens of the state if you are unable in those ten days. Have a good day."

We left. But it was right then when I lost it.

"DARRY!" He came running down the hallway.

"Pone, I-"

"I love you." I said. He straightened up, and looked me right in the eyes.

"I love you too, Ponyboy." He was crying.

So was I.


	5. Chapter 5

**New Chapter. And... if you would... would you please leave me a review? c:**

**I hope there are people out there enjoying my story.**

* * *

_[Ponyboy's POV]_

"Come on, boys. It won't be that bad. Ponyboy, we're going to need to get you some real clothes, and not that ratty gown." Mrs. Lock said, leading the way to a van. Soda helped me in, and Mrs. Lock pushed the wheelchair back to the hospital. I contemplated just booking it now, but there were two factors. One, I broke my leg. That wouldn't work out very well. Two, Soda was already in the van beside me. Any chances of escape were slim to none. I sighed, and Soda slid his arm around me.

"It's gonna be okay, Pony." I'm not sure if he was trying to convince me or him. I wasn't exactly sure why Mrs. Lock was taking Soda, sure he was underaged, but they had never put him on trial for a boy's home. Only me.

"Are you sure?" I asked, sniffing and wiping what was left of my silly tears.

"Of course I am," he said cheerfully, "I'm always sure of what I'm saying."

"Oh?"

"It's a big brother thing. You wouldn't understand." I snorted. Of course he'd pull that card on me. I'm not an older brother of anybody, so of course I wouldn't be able to know what he meant. Not to mention I'm the youngest of everybody around me; at school, the gang, our neighbourhood, everywhere. Even Curly Shepard is older than me by a year. And anyways, I didn't want to hang out with him. Over the last year, he's become a druggie. Marijuana, Cocaine, Heroine, you name it, he deals it. Darry says that shit is bad for you and I believe him. I've seen what it does to people. Curly's come to school stoned before. He was not a happy stoner, that was for sure.

It's kinda like how a person could either be a happy drunk, like Two-Bit, or an alcoholic abusive person, like Steve's dad. I wasn't going to do anything like that, and that was for sure. Curly's tried to sell me stuff before, he's even tried to test his new 'products' out on me as a favour. But I ain't stupid, no matter what Darry says.

Mrs. Lock slamming the door stopped my thought monologue.

"Boys, I'm going to take you by the boy's home. You'll like it there! There's a bunch of boys that are just like you. They'd be delighted to be your friends." Me ad Soda stared with disbelief. Soda even went as far as to drop his jaw. But the lady didn't notice. She just went eight on making a show of finding her keys and turning on the van with a _vroom. _Soda cringed at the sound it made. It doesn't take a mechanic to tell you that the engine needs a checking. I guess she doesn't care. Not that I do; I'll take whatever life gives me to stall getting to the boy's home. I'm sure Sodapop feels the same way.

I sighed as we took off through the parking lot. I saw Darry making his way by himself to the truck. Our gang started with seven, was then reduced to five, and is now reduced to three. If we keep this up, Only one of us is going to be left.

Soda followed my gazed and smiled sadly.

"He'll get us back. I promise." Soda said, giving my shoulders a squeeze.

"Don't make promises you can't keep, Sodapop." Mrs. Lock cut in. Soda sucked in a big breath.

"Listen, lady. You can't just-"

"Soda no. It's not worth it." I gripped his forearm with my good hand, since my other hand had been wrapped in a cast by that nurse who came in. He scoffed and jerked his arm from my grasp. I bit my lip, and he looked at me.

"Aww, I'm sorry Pone. I didn't mean it."

"It's okay, Soda. Just don't get hyped up." He smirked.

"What about you? In that hospital room, you really showed her."

"I'm right here."

"Your point?" Soda said icily, giving her a pointed glare. I sighed; this was not going to get easier. Silence filled the air, and trust me when I say that it was an awkward silence. We drove for what felt forever before we reached a big gate. Mrs. Lock talked with the gatesmen before we were allowed in. It felt like prison.

Soda put his arm around my shoulder again. He was scared, and I know it. I don't think that he does though. Once we puled up, there were kids everywhere, watching as we drove in. Toddler boys, children, teenagers, you name it. Mrs. Lock opened the door, and the nurse (I think she was a nurse, because she had a nurse cap on) handed me a pair of crutches.

But let me ask you something; How am I supposed to get around with a cast on my hand? I guess they just decided that I would figure that out on my own. Yeah well, guess what lady, I did figure it out. I'm not sure how, nor did I care. But I figured it out. I made my way passed everybody, acutely aware I was in a hospital gown still, with the band still around my wrist. But do you think I care?

Not even in the slightest. I was led by a man to this room with a bed and things, he showed me a closet that had uniforms in it; one for school, one for the boy's home. There were a whole stock of them in there. Soda was right behind me the whle way.

"You two will be going to school at the beginning of next week." Mrs. Lock said evenly. Soda protested.

"But I dropped out!" Mrs. Lock smiled sickly sweet.

"Since you are in a state home you are required to go to school. Every boy here has to. It's the rules." Soda's jaw dropped. I felt mine go slack, too.

Soda was going to school again? I know I should be happy, but Soda obviously wasn't. If he wasn't happy, I wasn't.

"What am I gonna do, Pone?" Soda said, sitting on a bed. putting his face in his hands. Somehow, I knew this wasn't going to end well. I sat beside him, somewhat awkwardly.

"Soda it's gonna be okay. I'll help you!" I said.

"But, Pony I'm a whole year ahead of you." He said with despair.

"Does that matter?" I asked. "I can help you. I wasn't put a grade ahead for nothin'." He cracked a grin.

"No, I guess not." I patted his back, then some man entered.

"Patrick? Michael?"

"Sir," Soda said, "Those are our middle names." The man looked at us with what looked like annoyance.

"So then what are your real names?" I bit my lip. It's a bad habit.

"My name is Sodapop. This is Ponyboy."

"Don't fool with me. What is your name?"

"Those ARE our names!" Soda exclaimed. The man looked angry now.

"Those are not your names! Who is Patrick, and who is Michael?" I sighed. He wasn't going to understand. So before Soda could reply, I answered.

"I'm Michael, that's Patrick." Soda looked at me.

"What are you doing?" He hissed. "Those are our middle names!"

"Soda he obviously ain't gonna call us that. We might as well go with that." I said tiredly. The man pointed to the closet.

"Get dressed." I stood up awkwardly, then crutched over to the closet, getting the uniform made for me. It was faded blue with a OCBH. I learned later on that it meant Oklahoma City Boy's Home. So that meant we were kinda far from Tulsa. I got dressed, and so did Soda.

"But they can't make me go to school! I'm legally old enough!" He said, tugging the faded blue shirt over his head. I just shrugged. I didn't know what they had going on here, and I didn't care. I was just focused on getting out of here.

Darry had ten days. That's not even two full weeks. How was he gonna do this? Was he gonna build the house again? Or was he gonna find a new one? We didn't have money for that. We really didn't. And with Soda not helpin', it's gonna be a lot harder to do it.

Our future was not looking that bright.

_[Time Break~ Pony's POV]_

A bell rang overhead, and me and Soda made our way with the rest of the boys to what looked like a cafeteria. Soda stayed close to me. He hasn't really left me since we've got here. I really didn't mind; it's good to at least know someone.

"Hey, Patrick! Michael! Over here!" Some boy called. I really didn't want to go over there, and neither did Soda, apparently. But we did anyways. The kid looked sketchy, not to be trusted.

"Hey," Soda said. "You called?" The kid nodded.

"I'm Aaron. I'm part of Shepard's gang. I know who you really are, but they told us to call you Patrick and Michael." Now that I looked at him, I did recognize him. He was Aaron Ghram, he was one of the 'insiders'. He was tight in the gang. He wasn't stupid like the other ones, and he didn't do drugs, like Curly did.

"Good to see a familiar face," Soda said. Aaron was Soda's age. I vaguely remember them hanging out at school once or twice before Soda dropped out. We sat down with him at the table, before we were called to get our food. Soda went to get mine; he didn't want me to get up. I sat there looking over the scene.

All these boys were jus sitting there eating like this was something normals. Well it may normal for them, but it ain't for me. One kid looked at me right when I looked at him and he stood up.

"You starin' at me, kid?" He said, coming around the table to get in my face. "Huh? Were ya?"

"No," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "I wasn't starin' at you." He grabbed my shirt collar.

"Like hell you weren't! I seen'd you!" I almost commented on his grammar, but then I thought it might be a good idea not to. I'd like to keep my head on, even if I don't use it. He grit his teeth and spit in my face.

"Leave my kid brother alone!" Soda yelled, seemingly coming from nowhere, and the kid backed up. My blonde brother was a _lot _bigger than him.

"Andrew, you leave Michael alone," Aaron said, pushing him. "Go eat your chow before time's up." The kid-Andrew- snorted then stalked off. I wiped my face off, disgusted.

"I didn't do nothin' to him." I said, angry. Soda just sat down with mine and his tray.

"Nobody ever does anything to him," Aaron said. "He's just like that 'cos his pa was like that. Steer clear of him, okay?" I nodded.

"Jeez kid, only here for three hours and already gettin' in trouble." Soda glared at him, but he wasn't angry with him.

"It's all Mrs. Lock's fault," Soda spit venomously. "She brought us here."

"Me too." Aaron said, eating his food.

I suddenly wasn't hungry anymore.


	6. Chapter 6

_[Pony's Pov]_

"She brought you here too?" I said, wanting to be nonchalant. Aaron looked at me like I was a stupid hood. He swallowed the bite we was eating then pointed at me with his fork.

"Yeah she brought me here. She brought alla us here. You ain't the only one, kid. She's a nasty one, that lady. You can't even ask her the time of day without her glaring at you like you stepped on her toes. And the way she talks? I just wanna sock her in the face. Half these greases don't even know what the hell she says half the time." He took another bite of his sandwich, downing the milk carton he brought over. Soda was pushing his vegetables around with his head in his hand. He sighed lightly, and what I wouldn't give for a smoke right now. From where I was sitting, I could see Andrew's cronies staring at me with hard eyes, every one of them.

One of them had really short black hair that was close to looking like a buzz-cut, and his eyes were pale blue, kinda like Darry's. Only, the difference is that Darry's eyes are thawed out now, and this guys eyes were colder than ice, if that was possible. Another one next to him was a kid I've seen at school before. He's junior, and his name is Bryson. He has sandy coloured hair with brown eyes and a defined chin that looked desperately in need of a shave or some kind of grooming. The guy beside him was deep in conversation with Andrew, and he looked to be younger than I am. He had long brown hair in the back that went past the knot of his neck and rested near his shoulder blades. He had sharp cheekbones and he'd be real handsome if he'd clean up some. Now his eyes were kind of tricky: they were green with blue towards the outside and yellow towards the center in a ring around his pupil. He looked scared, as if he was expecting a blow of some sort to come at any second.

And in that next moment, it did. Andrew drew back his fist and before the kid had time to move, he was knocked hard in the teeth. He fell backwards right off the bench he was sitting on, and landed hard on his back, blood gushing from his split lip. Andrew jumped up.

"You don't talk to me like that! If I ask you a question, you don't give me a snooty answer, ya hear? I run this joint, and if you want to get on my bad side, alls you gotta do is one thing, one tiny slip up, and your head will suddenly be able to see your backside!" The kid had managed to stand up in all of this, back his way down the long isles between the benches. Andrew advanced, but I guess I hadn't had enough of Andrew today.

"Hey! Leave him alone, you jerk!" I screamed over the roaring silence, as everybody has stopped what they were doing to watch what was happening. Andrew turned towards me, and Soda pulled on my jumper, trying to get me to sit down. I had hopped up, apparently, and I was standing full weight on my broken leg.

"Pony, this ain't your fight to be in. Leave it be." Soda said, trying to reason with me. I wasn't done with my rant yet, though.

"He's just a kid, and you don't need'ta go and hit him like that!" Andrew was not happy.

"Oh yeah, puny? Let's just see you try to stop me. I betcha won't, you'll chicken out and have your brother fight all your fights for you!" Soda made to stand up, but I waved me hand telling him to stay put. Andrew grabbed a hold of the kid, and held him in a choke hold. Golly that kid could turn colours fast.

_Forget the crutches,_ my conscience told me, _ you can do this!_

I calmly walked -well limped really, but hey, who's getting technical in all of this?- over to him, staring straight at his eyes, then landed a good one right in his left eye. And like that, that cafeteria went into flight mode, and one kid was fighting another, others ran from the hall, or if you were Soda and Aaron, you were trying to stop kids from fighting.

The kid was dropped, and he was gasping lightly on the floor while me and Andrew were duking it out, skin-on-skin. He tried to land a kick to my stomach, but I jumped back rather painfully onto my foot, avoiding his massive leg. He wasn't expecting the sudden movement, and his weight and momentum served in my favour as he fell over, toppling to the side and clunking his head on the bench.

"WHAT is going ON in HERE?" A shrill voice rang out, drawing all the fights that were raging to a stopping point. I looked over to sneak a look at the face to the voice, it being a very stout and blonde woman in her mid-forties, maybe early fifties. While I wasn't looking, Andrew took that opportunity to snag a good one into my stomach, reminding me greatly of the Socs at school back home. That coward. I doubled over, wheezing, but then I remembered what Steve told me, and then straightened up. He was right; you can breathe easier. Soda inched his way towards me, pulling me away from Andrew as I gasped.

"I said, _what is going on in here?" _The lady asked, her hands on her hips and a hard look on her face. Aaron spoke up from his side of the room.

"Andrew over ere was trying to bust some kid's face in. We were simply helping him out." he said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder towards Andrew. "And in the process, this happened." he gestured to the whole area of fighting. Soda had me in a tight embrace, not letting me go, but I wasn't comfortable with my cast on my arm getting shoved into my side. I poked him with my good hand, and he got the message loosening up a little bit. Andrew then tried to reason with the lady.

"No I didn't start it! Puny- I mean, Michael did! Alls I was doin' was talking to John all nice like!"

"Oh yeah, all nice like," I said sarcastically, "Just look at his face!" I yelled.

"Enough!" The lady screamed over Andrew's new retort. "All of you to your rooms. _Now._ And you all stay there until dinner, you hear?" She turned to leave, then she sharply did a 180. "Except for you, Andrew. You will be coming with me. No arguments." When that was said, she finally left, and all the boys here were grumbling as the followed suit. Andrew had sulked his way to the doors and down another hallway behind that lady. It was then when I remembered that kid. I broke from Soda's grasp, limping to the kid who was still on the floor, but now in a sitting position.

"Hey," I said, "You alright?" He turned to me, his lip still bleeding freely. I leaned down to help him up, but he didn't take my hand.

"I'm _fine._" He huffed. I was taken aback.

"Oh. Okay, well, my name's Po-"

"Ponyboy, I know. You didn't have to help me, alright? I'm not some dumb kid who can't take care of himself." He poked his finger into my chest.

"Now listen here," I said, my rage flaring up, "I helped you because you got your face beat in. That doesn't sound like you took care of yourself. He could've choked you and I only helped!" He brushed off some invisible dirt, standing up and having a staring contest with me.

"You don't look like you took care of yourself," he said, eyeing my casts and Soda with my crutches. "And you sure as hell don't look like that kid who saved those kids in the church. I bet your friends would've been just fine without you to go and give them a death wish."

"How do you know about that?" He shrugged.

"Word gets around, you know. It was state news, not one person didn't hear it. That kid you were with, Johnny, I bet he woulda had a good life without you in it." I shoved him roughly.

"You don't know anything about Johnny! Don't you _dare _talk about him!" I screamed, and Soda finally took charge, dragging me away from him and handing me my crutches.

"C'mon, Pony, lets go. He ain't worth it. You heard that lady. We have to go back to our room." I sighed, leaving it be. I followed Soda back to our room, sitting heavily on my bed. We sat in silence for a while, until Soda came and sat beside me, putting his arm around my shoulders.

"You know Darry'll do anything to help us get out of here. You don't have to worry about that. So, you don't need to go and start fights about it, okay, Pone?" I just nodded.

"Yeah. But it stinks that only a few people know our real names, and even though it's on our birth certificates, they still don't call us them." Soda sighed.

"Yeah I know. It bothers me too, but what can we do about it? We don't make the rules."

And I knew that. But I couldn't help but think that maybe the state wasn't going to help us in any way. We weren't really the richest, we weren't really the most responsible, and we certainly didn't have the best image to go with our case. Two-Bit was a restless drunk, Darry could flatten anybody in his way, and me, well, I had a knack for finding trouble.

I hope at least Darry was having a better time than we were.

* * *

_[Darry's Pov]_

For at least the twelfth-hundred time, I started pacing. Two-Bit watched from his hospital bed, apparently still not healthy enough to leave. Steve was picking his nails with his blade.

"Muscles you'd better stop. If you get too juiced up they won't let you stay here." Steve said. I sighed, rubbing my face and sitting on the chair beside him.

"Yeah you're probably right. But the _house, _Steve! What am I gonna do?" He stared at me, his eyes boring holes into me. And for a second, I didn't feel like a guardian. I feel like a scared kid who doesn't know what to do.

"You are _Darry, _right? I mean, damn! You're not in this by yourself! You have us! And I'm sure that if we asked Tim, the Shepard gang would probably help. And if Tim's in on this, damn sure that the Brumley boys would help. They my not be the brightest, but you've seen what they can do to get materials." We shared a silent moment.

"Thanks, man." I said. He just nodded. Then Two-Bit decided to join in on this.

"Man Steve, I never took you for the motivational type."

"Shut the hell up, dumbass." Steve said, flipping him the bird. I laughed a little. The tense air instantly released, and we sat silently again. I guess I could ask Tim, he was a good friend who'd help us in a pinch, and we'd help him just the same. Now the Brumley's were different, though. They would help us, but they had this rule. They had to repay us in order to do it. Rumbles were different. They'd come to that because everybody else was going to be there. But then I remembered something.

Last month, I received a call at work telling me that Two-Bit was in jail with a couple of their guys.

_"My ma would have a fit if I called her. Thanks for coming, Darry." _ Two-Bit had said. He had showed me the Brumley's. _"They're stuck here. For a while."_

_"What did you guys do?" _He had given me such a look, I questioned even asking him.

_"We were getting the kid some smokes. He requested we do so, so I obliged. I just met these guys along the way and we hung out. Finally got caught, man." _I remember sighing and scrubbing at my face.

"_You guys are lucky I got off work when you called. All of you. Lets get going." _The surprise on the Brumley's face's was enough of a reward of the day.

"Hey Steve," I said suddenly. "You have any paybacks from the Brumley's?" Steve looked thoughtful for a moment, then nodded.

"I fixed Tony's radiator for free. Told me he owed me one."

"Great. That's good. What about you, Two-Bit?" He looked over from where he was staring at his hands.

"No, sorry. But I'm sure that they'll help." I nodded.

"I'm sure they will too." And just like that, we had a repair crew. But I can only hope that we'll get it done in time. Well if I'm going to get this done, I'd better get started. But I'd need materials. I'd need something to help me clear the roof off the floor. I'd need my _crew. _

"Excuse me," I said, getting up to leave. I hurried to the payphone and put in a dime for the fee. I dialed Tim's and hoped for the best.

_"Hello?" _His voice -recognisable and clear as day- rang through.

"Hey, Tim. It's Darry." There was shuffling in the background.

_"Oh, hell, what did I do to have ol Darrel call me?"_

"You didn't do anything. Yet. But I need to ask you a favour." You could hear the surprise snap onto his face.

_"Darrel Curtis, asking for a favour? Well I never thought I'd see the day, let alone be the person of interest. What d'you need?" _I sighed.

"Well, I need my brothers back. But first, I need a construction crew to help out. Think you can help me?" There wasn't even a beat of silence before he answered.

_"I can help."_

"Thanks a thousand, Tim. I'll call you later, okay?"

_"Of course, Curtis. I'll round up my boys." _Then I heard the dial tone and I knew he hung up. And now all I had to do was head over to Brumley. And even though I'd like to think I could go alone, I knew that wasn't a good idea. It's not our turf, not our rules, and if I knew the Brumley gang, they were going to get some 'bop-action' as they called it. So it was always better to take a person with you for back-up.

I headed back to the room and went in, interrupting their whispered conversation.

"Hey, Steve. I want you to come with me." I said, nodding towards the door. "You got a blade or somethin'?" I knew he did; it was sorta like a dress code us greasers had. As I expected him to, he nodded.

"Yeah," he stood up, "Where are we going?"

"Brumley's. With any luck they'll help us." He nodded knowingly.

"Right. You'll be okay, Two-Bit?"

"Yeah," he sighed. "Probably catch some z's if I'm lucky. Good luck." He nodded and waved us off. Steve walked and I followed him down the corridor and out the hospital.

"Your truck or my car?"

"Your car. My truck is low on gas. Soda forgot to fill it up last tie he used it." Oh god, _last time._ He won't be around for a long two weeks, and it's all my fault.

_Well, little buddy, _ I thought, _and you too, Pony, I'll get you back soon. I promise. _

And then we headed off.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for this very late update. I really am. I have no excuse so I hope you'll forgive me.**

**TTOH**


	7. Chapter 7

_[Two-Bit's POV]_

And just like that, I was left alone. I sighed, laying my head back against head rails. Man this whole thing was gonna give me an ulcer. Check that. _Darry _an ulcer. Man that poor guy. Worked his ass of just to get repayed like this.

One of the nurses came in ready to check on me. An idea struck me.

"Hey, can I go? Check out, I mean." She looked taken aback, then shook her head.

"No, I'm sorry, Keith. You aren't to leave. We still need to observe your concussion." I pressed on.

"But technically, I can leave if I want. You can't keep me here if I don't want." She sniffed, and then let out a sigh.

"You'll still have to pay for our services."

"And that I will, ma'am don't you worry. But now, my friend needs me." She nodded in understanding.

"Please get them back. They were good kids." I felt my eyes go wide, and she smiled softly and nodded at the door. I saluted her, grinning at her. I grabbed my pants (the only thing that survived the doctors), put them on, and was out the door, hospital gown billowing around me. I ran down the hallways, forgetting the wheelchair I was supposed to have.

I called Ma at her hotel and asked her to come get me at the hospital. She came and got me, though, not after giving me a hug strong enough to strangle that bear I told Pony about. She kissed my cheek, and I patted her arm as she started the car.

"Where do you need to go?" I smiled at her eagerness to help.

"I could really use a shower and a shirt. Think you could hook me up?" She chuckled.

"Keith you should know better than to think I left the house without anything." She scolded me lightly, parking in the lot in front of the hotel. I hopped out, then thought better of it when a dizzy spell caught up with me. I blinked and followed my mother, who was walking faster than she had before. This made me wonder how much she actually knew.

"Here you are, son." She gave me the full thing, underwear and everything. I kissed her cheek and went to the shower, relishing the warm water. Not too hot, I remember something Darry told Soda a while back ago. If you shower in hot water while you have a concussion, you're sure to pass out. And at this moment, I really don't need that. Neither did Darry. I hurried and shoered, taking my ma's car and heading over to Brumly.

* * *

_[Darry's Pov]_

"Steve, if you don't stop doing that you'll cut your finger." I said for at least the sixth time. He kept running his finger over the sharp side of his blade, whether he was checking for their dullness, or something else, I didn't know. He sighed and finally put the blade away.

"We're here." He said, straightening up, and looking out the window. I nodded and cut off the engine. He looked at me, and I nodded, hopefully assuringly. I knew Steve had beef with some of these guys, and I bet he was uneasy about it. I hopped out, hurrying to meet up with the leader.

"Hey, Brumley, I addressed a few of the gang members. They looked up at me. "Your boss around?" One of them pointed over to an area, but the other shook his head.

"What you want, kid?" They said to me, although I was a good few inches and years ahead of him. I hardened my glare.

"Listen, I'm the eldest Curtis..." The guy stiffened and grimaced.

"Yeah he's here. On over there, passed that fallen tree, you's two will find 'im. Good luck." I nodded to him, and Steve eye'd that guy wearily. I pulled on his arm.

"C'mon, man. Don't wussy out on me. I need you." He put his lips in a firm line and nodded, and I let go of him.

"DARRY! Don't forget me!" I heard, and I whipped around. Two-Bit came running over. But by the time he got to us, he leaned over, holding his head. "Man I really need to quit movin' so much." I leaned over next to him, looking at his head, and then feeling his warm forehead.

"What you doin' out of the hospital, idiot?" Steve said, helping him straighten up. Two-Bit smirked.

"I gave her a little persuasion." I felt myself go pale, but then he tried to backtrack his sentence.

"No, no, muscles. I didn't do nothin' to her. That nurse is fine." I sighed with relief, knowing his mother wouldn't appreciate how he was treating those women.

"Alright, alright. We need to get to get this over with. You know this is for Pony and Soda's well-being." I said, pointing at Two-Bit. He put his hand up in an innocent gesture.

"I promise man, I ain't pulling shit here. I know how much this means to you. To all of us." I sighed, and hunched over, rubbing his temples. I knew what that meant; Ponyboy was usually the one pulling that 'rub the temple' stuff. It was a headache brewing. I sighed.

"Two-Bit, you sure you're okay?" He sighed.

"Man, I'm not the one you need to worry about. Where's the bossman?" He said, locking around. I pointed over there, Steve and I heading that way. Tow-bit brung up the rear, and we slouched, looking tough. Hopefully.

"Curtis! What can I help you with?" It was him, the boss of all operations.

"Hey, Bryan. Long time, no see. How've you been?" Bryan, his last name was and nobody bothered to learn his first name, raised his eyebrows skeptically. Maybe it was obvious what I was here for; I never venture on this side of the town unless I or any of the gang absolutely needs something, and if you were desperate enough to ask for the Brumley's help, well, you were in some deep trouble. I rubbed the back of my neck.

"I need a favour. Besides, i have owes from our side that need payed by you." He nodded.

"And they are?" I should've known he would ask what they were.

"I got two of your men out of jail, and Steve here," I pointed with my thumb towards him, "repaired Tony's radiator for free. He told him he owed him one. Well, we'd like to cash those in." He scratched his chin, then looked at Tony, who nodded.

"I did tell him that. I think we should help him, Bryan." Bryan, who was giving us his _not-gonna-happen _look, finally caved.

"Alrighty, boys, you've got yourself a crew. Whatcha need?"

"To repair my house. It was totally destroyed, and it needs to get built in less that two weeks if we wanna get Ponyboy and Sodapop back from the state." His eyebrows shot up.

"They took them? Damn, well, I'm sorry. Sure, Darrell we'll help. All of us. I'm sure they'd be willing to help." He turned to give them his look, and they all nodded in sync, and even replied in sync;

"Yes, boss."

"Great," I said, "How long before we can start? i'd like to hurry."

"Now, if you'd like. But our best bet is to start early tomorrow and work that whole day. That good?" I felt relief.

"That's wonderful. Thank you, Bryan."

"Anything for a Curtis in need," he held out his knuckles for me to bop, most likely to seal the deal, "See you early tomorrow, 'kay?" I nodded.

"Listen... Thanks. I really do appreciate this. A lot." He just shrugged.

"Get goin'. See ya."

"Yeah... see ya."


End file.
